Vegetarian (or not) “Chicken” Pot Pie

In my book, chicken pot pie is serious comfort food. It reminds me of my childhood and is always satisfying. Now that it is heating up here in the desert, I figured I had better make this tasty dish one last time before the summer prevents it. As yummy as this recipe is, cooking with my oven when it is 120 degrees outside is not on my to-do list.

As the sole vegetarian in my home, I usually find myself making two meals, altering my meaI, or serving meat free meals. In order to get away with a meat free meal that my husband enjoys, I have to make it delicious. I was delighted when I combined and altered a few traditional recipes and came up with a pot pie that is both vegetarian and delicious. Even my husband loves it. In fact, I had to take the vegetarian “chicken” packaging out of the trash to prove to him it was a vegetarian dish. Of course, if you eat meat, this recipe can be made with real chicken meat and broth. I usually serve this with a nice cool salad.

Vegetarian (or not) “Chicken” Pot Pie

Ingredients

• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 1 cup carrots, diced
• 1 medium potato, peeled and diced
• 1/3 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup half-and-half or milk
• 2 cups chicken broth alternative (see notes)
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 package of vegetarian “Chik’n Strips”, diced (see notes)
• 2 pie crusts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Line a 2 quart casserole dish with one of the pie crusts – be sure the crust comes up high on the sides of the dish.
3. Melt butter in heated deep skillet or Dutch oven.
4. Add onion, celery, carrots and potatoes to butter and sauté for 10 minutes.
5. Add flour to sautéed vegetables and stir it constantly until it is well combined (about 1 minute).
6. Combine the half and half with the broth.
7. Gradually stir the broth/half and half mixture into vegetables.
8. Cook over medium heat until thickened and bubbly – be sure to stir it constantly!
9. Stir in salt and pepper.
10. Mix in the chicken.
11. Pour the mixture into the casserole dish.
12. Top with remaining pie crust and pinch the two crusts together. Remove excess crust and cut slits to allow steam to escape.
13. Bake for 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling though.
14. Let pie cool for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Notes

• Feel free to adjust the vegetable measurements to your taste.
• My favorite vegetarian chicken broth substitute is Better Than Bouillon’s No Chicken Base. This base is MSG and GMO free. I have used powdered veggie broth mixes and I find this base to be far superior. Of course, if you eat meat you can just use real chicken broth.
• I use Morningstar Farms Meal Starters Chik’n Strips. Any chicken replacer would likely work. Once again, if you eat meat, just use chicken.
• I have NOT been paid by these companies; I just love them.  It is hard to find good vegetarian products and when I do I share them.

Please let me know if you try this recipe or have tried one like it. Feel free to leave a comment. Share and let’s talk about it.